BAKU, Azerbaijan
It has been a year since the signing of a tripartite declaration between Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Russia ending the war over Nagorno-Karabakh, yet its section on a corridor connecting western Armenia to the exclave of Nakhchivan has yet to be implemented due to Armenia’s uncompromising stance.
A year ago today, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, and Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a declaration declaring the end of the conflict in Karabakh, also known as Upper Karabakh, following a nearly three-decade occupation by Armenian forces.
In its first year, some articles of the declaration were applied, while some articles remained on paper due to Armenian intransigence.
The parts on the Zangezur corridor are among those that have not yet been put into force.
Articles 2 and 6, which envisage the withdrawal of Armenian forces from the provinces of Agdam, Kelbajar, and Lachin, were applied long ago. By the end of last November, the Armenian army had left the three occupied provinces, and the Azerbaijani army had settled there.
According to Article 3, Russian elements were placed in the Armenian-populated areas of Karabakh and in the Lachin corridor. A total of 1,960 lightly armed Russian soldiers and 90 armored personnel carriers were deployed to the region. Their term of duty was set at five years, but that could be extended if all parties agree.
In Article 4, which stipulates that "Russian forces are deployed in parallel with the withdrawal of Armenian forces" has not been fully implemented. The Armenian army has withdrawn, but the fact that there are still armed Armenian groups in the region is one of the issues vexing the Azerbaijani side.
Article 5, which provides for the "establishment of an observation center to improve the efficiency of monitoring the compliance of the parties to the cease-fire," was implemented, and a Joint Turkish-Russian Observation Center was established in Agdam, Karabakh this January.
The issue of return of refugees under the control of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) specified in Article 7 has also not yet been implemented due to how the settlements were completely destroyed by Armenians during the occupation period and also for security reasons.
Article 8 on the issue of the exchange of prisoners and the dead was also applied. Azerbaijan has handed over to the opposite side the bodies of more than 1,700 Armenian soldiers which had remained on the battlefields.
The last article, which Azerbaijan has been focusing on with great importance and which provides for the connection of the country’s contiguous territory and the Autonomous Republic of Nakhchivan – its exclave – via land and rail routes through Armenia, has not yet been implemented.
Azerbaijan has started work on this issue, and construction of the part of this line called the Zangezur corridor up to the Armenian border is underway.
Although Armenia tried to resist, Prime Minister Pashinyan made positive statements about the opening of transport between the western provinces of Azerbaijan and Nakhchivan.
Aliyev, Pashinyan, and Putin are expected to meet once again soon and sign a more detailed statement on the determination of transport lines and the borders of the two countries.
Armenia will not take positive steps of its own accord
Ferid Shefiyev, chairman of the Azerbaijan Center of Analysis of International Relations, based in the capital Baku, told Anadolu Agency in a statement that Azerbaijan, which won the war, should put diplomatic pressure on Armenia from now on.
"History shows that Armenia will not take positive steps of its own accord," he said.
“On Jan. 11, 2021, another declaration on transport lines was signed. Although months have passed since then, Armenia has been sitting out the process.
“Due to pressure from Azerbaijan and the influence of Russia, the Yerevan administration has now responded positively to this issue,” he added.
"Unfortunately, there are still armed Armenian forces in the region controlled by Russian elements," Shefiyev stressed, referring to the non-implemented articles of the trilateral declaration.
“There are also problems in the Lachin corridor. We have to enforce control there sooner or later.
“Foreign citizens still use this corridor. Compared to the beginning of 2021, the rate of visits by foreigners has fallen. As far as I know, Russia also doesn’t want problems with this matter.”
Shefiyev said that 4,000 Azerbaijanis were missing in the first Karabakh conflict of the early 1990s, but that Armenia has not yet responded on the fate of these people.
Conflict between Azerbaijan, Armenia
Relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia have been tense since 1991, when the Armenian military occupied Nagorno-Karabakh, also known as Upper Karabakh, a territory internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan, and seven adjacent regions.
New clashes erupted on Sept. 27 last year, with the Armenian army attacking civilians and Azerbaijani forces and violating several humanitarian cease-fire agreements.
During the 44-day military conflict, Azerbaijan liberated several cities and some 300 settlements and villages that were occupied by Armenia for almost 30 years.
Prior to this, about 20% of Azerbaijan’s territory was under illegal occupation.
The two countries signed a Russian-brokered agreement on Nov. 10 to end the fighting and work toward a comprehensive resolution.
The cease-fire was seen as a victory for Azerbaijan and a defeat for Armenia, whose forces withdrew in line with the agreement.
This Jan. 11, the leaders of Russia, Azerbaijan, and Armenia signed a pact to develop economic ties and infrastructure to benefit the entire region. The deal also included the establishment of a Turkish-Russian monitoring center.
*Writing by Merve Berker